


What a Waste of a Lovely Night

by gl1tt3r_w0rmz



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Dissociation, Friends to Lovers, Humanstuck, Hurt/Comfort, I made my own Alternian language, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Minor Character Death, Minor Rose Lalonde/Kanaya Maryam, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:28:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 17,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23783176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gl1tt3r_w0rmz/pseuds/gl1tt3r_w0rmz
Summary: Why someone had to move into town at the tail end of the school year was something Karkat couldn’t fathom. Even moreso, he couldn’t understand why all his friends were busting nuts all over this new guy, completely uprooting his senior year and everything he had gotten used to. It wasn’t that Karkat was against making new friends, even though it was blatantly clear from the perpetual sneer etched onto his face that he wanted no part of this meeting this new guy, but Karkat had always had the same small group of people around him that he was comfortable with, and shoehorning a new personality created a myriad of uncertainties that quite honestly scared the shit out of him. It freaked him out enough when Kanaya brought her girlfriend into the group, and now said girlfriend’s brother… half-brother… whatever familial relation he had didn’t matter when ultimately Karkat had decided that he was just some asshole here to fuck shit up.---------TL;DR Dave moves into town and Karkat decides that no amount of cute freckles on his shoulders and sweet, southern sweet talking could make up for the stupid shades he's always wearing.
Relationships: Dave Strider/Karkat Vantas
Comments: 6
Kudos: 66





	1. Of Shoehorning Assholes and Hipster Shade

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is my first fic, and I'm really excited to share it. I'm very lucky to have my awesome pal (and s-senpai) beta read for me. I have a whole lot planned for this, so I really hope you enjoy reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it :3

Why someone had to move into town at the tail end of the school year was something Karkat couldn’t fathom. Even moreso, he couldn’t understand why all his friends were busting nuts all over this new guy, completely uprooting his senior year and everything he had gotten used to. It wasn’t that Karkat was against making new friends, even though it was blatantly clear from the perpetual sneer etched onto his face that he wanted no part of this meeting this new guy, but Karkat had always had the same small group of people around him that he was comfortable with, and shoehorning a new personality created a myriad of uncertainties that quite honestly scared the shit out of him. It freaked him out enough when Kanaya brought her girlfriend into the group, and now said girlfriend’s brother… half-brother… whatever familial relation he had didn’t matter when ultimately Karkat had decided that he was just some asshole here to fuck shit up. 

Presently, John was poking and prodding at Karkat’s side to meet the aforementioned asshole at the airport. Saying Karkat was unwilling was the understatement of the century. 

“Listen, dude, I know you’re not psyched to meet him, but this is Rose’s brother. You love Rose… or you at least tolerate her and somewhat enjoy her presence. The point is, she’s our friend, and she asked us all to be there to give him a big ol’ Washington welcome.” John puffed out the last bit of his long winded pitch on why Karkat absolutely has to participate in this ultimate cool guy introductory bonanza, punctuating his late statement with a valiant shove. Determined not to budge, Karkat rolled his eyes, “This is bullshit. You know it. I know it. Hell, even Lalonde knows it’s bullshit to drag me along, or any of us for this matter, to come pick up her weird ass brother and pretend like we give a shit.” 

John frowned, folding his arms together and jutting his bottom lip out into a pathetic pout. The biggest puppy eyes this bucktoothed idiot could muster began to slowly break down Karkat’s spiteful resolve. 

“Buddy, I give a shit. If you don’t wanna do this for Rose, then do it for me! I promise you’ll like him Karkat. I’ve talked to him a couple times, and he's a really cool dude, swear on my life!” 

John was insufferable.

“Fuck! Fine, John, I will play nice at this little asshole party for the sake of you, Rose, and whoever the fuck else is there. Happy?” Karkat’s voice increasingly rose in octaves as he got more aggrivated with his stupid friends and their awful efforts to include him in everything social. 

Karkat angrily clambered into the passenger seat of John’s beat up truck. Thankfully, John chose to take the backroads. It always took longer on the winding curves, but Karkat hated the highway. The fumes leaking out of tailpipes gave him a headache and it was so noisy. Karkat really appreciated the serenity that woodsy backroads offered, especially when he had to be in a car for prolonged periods of time.

The drive to the airport is mostly silent, save for the quiet hum of John’s radio. Idly, Karkat watched the trees pass by him in a rushing blur as if someone softened the edges of his vision, or John was driving well above the speed limit because the two of them were running late due to Karkat’s tantrum. The wind whipped rapidly throughout the car since John, for some ungodly reason, refused to ever turn the air conditioning on. “The wind is nature’s A/C!” is what he always said whenever his friends would gripe. Karkat never minded because it wasn’t like the wind could mess up his hair since it was in a perpetual state of being a fussed up mess. At least with the windows down Karkat was able to rest his arms part way out the car, chin sitting on top of his crossed arms, he was determined to at least have one good moment before all the calm in his life was disrupted by hurricane Dave.

There was a thick smell of rain and dirt that overwhelmed the backroads. It never failed to amaze Karkat how long the musky smell could persist in the woods after a good storm. It would’ve been a dream to just jump out of the car and rush into the sanctity of the woods. Honestly, anything would be better than meeting some random asshole at a crowded airport in Seattle. The hour drive gave Karkat at least a little time to brood out all his testiness. Well, not all of it, of course. This is still Karkat, and he can remain as angry as a petulant toddler out of sheer spite for almost a month. An occurrence that John and Terezi had unfortunatly found themselves tangled up in after one particularly intense night of Mario Kart. 

All temper tantrums and unnecessary broodings aside, Karkat found himself calmer the longer he sat silently in John’s pickup. Every couple of minutes or so the truck would run over a bump or dip into a pothole, momentarily jarring Karkat from his thoughts. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad meeting this Dave guy. How much could he really muscle his way into the friend group and figuratively screw the pooch that is the remnants of Karkat’s senior year. Subconsciously, Karkat knew he was fooling himself. Even without John’s fierce penchant for enthusiastic befriendment, the rest of his friends were sociable as all get out and willing to open their arms to any vaguely okay guy who made his way towards them. 

Karkat rolled his eyes, groaning lowly out the window. The sound piqued John’s interest apparently because not two seconds later he was talking Karkat’s ear off out of excitement. 

“We’re getting close, y’know. To the airport, I mean. Dude, I am so psyched to meet him! Have you finally untwisted your panties about it, Kar?” Everything tumbled out of John’s mouth like excitement vomit, eliciting another groan from Karkat.

“John, would you shut up? I’m gonna get a migraine off the fumes from your brain trying so hard to pump out indescernable words faster than the speed of fucking light.” 

John laughed, whole heartedly and loud, reverberating throughout the truck. Some seventh grade version of Karkat blushed deep in his fluttering heart, but almost eighteen year old Karkat stomped that bygone crush right out of his warm, friendly feelings. “Dude, you’re going to get along so well with Dave, I swear!” John's eyes shone brightly as he momentarily let go of the wheel to emphasize his statement with outstretched hands. 

“Keep your hands on the goddamn wheel, fuckass.” Karkat scolded with a quick swat to John’s arm. John replied with a pointed look before slowly placing his hands back on the wheel. 

“Karkat, dude, bro to bro. Tell me you’re excited. C’mon, don’t lie to me. I can tell that behind twenty layers of pissed off, you want to meet Dave.” 

John’s smile was infuriating. “No, John,” Karkat rolled his eyes, “I’m not fucking excited. The twenty layers are not a facade. They’re completely, one hundred percent genuine.” Despite himself, Karkat could feel his lips twitching upwards due to the bantering. John may have been an idiot, but there was the smallest bit of truth to his words. Over the hour drive Karkat realized he was just a little, itty bitty bit excited to meet Dave. If anyone asked, he’d say it was just to prove his own theories right, but there was another part of Karkat that craved… something. It wasn’t anything that Karkat could pin his finger on definitively. Perhaps it was the prospect of something new, something to pry Karkat out of his repetitious routines. Karkat would snap his thoughts away from this for fear of dwelling too long and losing himself. 

Unfortunately, Karkat was prone to losing himself to a spiral of thoughts and everyone knew it. John could sense it from the crease forming between his brows and the distant look set in his eyes. Karkat was never good at hiding his emotions, behind all the yelling there was always a betraying face full of emotions and eyes that would tell you everything if you looked into them long enough. John knew not to press though. After years, John had finally learned when Karkat was willing to talk about what was on his mind or when he’d be spooked into a corner, pretending that everything was fine and glaring down his nose at anyone who dared to suggest otherwise.

Karkat slumped farther in his seat, the seatbelt pressing into his cheek. He sighed, rubbed his eyes, and set them on the road ahead. Roadmarkers passed by in a blur, much as they had before, but it felt different now. There was no comfort in the way the trees streaked by. Nausea pooled in the back of his throat, shallow and not quite reaching his stomach. Karkat swallowed, used to this feeling. It was the feeling he got during a test, or when he thinks he can finally confess to someone after reading romance novels for middle-aged women all week, or during the dregs of a summer break when his phone sits on the bedside table, uncharged for several days. Try as he might, Karkat couldn’t shake the growing sickness and nerves that came over him. The doubt that sprung forth from uncertainty. Karkat begged whatever omnipotent deity was up there to keep his tears as bay. He didn’t want John to worry, naively believing that John hadn’t already noticed how his brain was spiraling. 

But how could he not worry. He didn’t know Dave. What if Dave really was as cool as John said he was and they - No, they wouldn’t. Karkat had known all of them for so long they wouldn’t just shove him away because some dude from Texas came in with a charming accent and a dry sense of humor. It was stupid to even feel so sick about all this. Why was he feeling so sick? Sure he was pissy about having to go meet the dude, but everything was fine. It was fine. Karkat was fine. 

He tried to focus on something, anything, but everything was streaking by at a million miles an hour. There were no street lights on the backroads, the curves seemed sharper than all the other time Karkat had ridden down these roads. Bile burned in the back of his throat, threatening to escape if Karkat so much as dared to open his mouth. Mouth clamped, eyes glued shut, Karkat tried to breathe. 

Thick. Why was the air so thick? Mollasass ran through Karkat lungs with each labored breath, weighing him down farther and farther into the firm seat of the truck. The seat belt locked tighter, constricting. Karkat had half a mind to yank at it until he freed himself but thought better of it when he considered how it would alert John. Karkat gagged on his breaths, the bile, the fear of being replaced or forgotten, discarded like an old toy.

The truck seemed to speed faster than before. White knuckled and on the brink of a cold sweat, Karkat clutched the cupholder and squeezed his eyes shut, tears welling up behind his eyelids, just shy of spilling over into ugly, gasping sobs. Breaths came out shorter and faster than Karkat wanted, none of them satisfied the ache in his lungs for air. It didn’t feel like the oxygen was even pushing past the thick sludge building up in his chest. He wished they would arrive at the airport already because Karkat could at least feign having to pee as a vague excuse to scurry off for a moment. Karkat needed to get away and relieve the heavy feeling in his chest. Everyone would’ve jumped his ass if he showed up like this, assuming he couldn’t get his shit under control. Oh god, what if he couldn’t. Questions. They’d have so many questions pooling in all around him until he drowned in the “Are you okay”s and the “What’s wrong”s. Kanaya’s worry stricken face and Terezi’s nimble finger tracing his tear tracks dance in his head tauntingly. How many times could he throw these fits before they’d give up, especially with Dave coming. 

Jesus, Dave. Dave, fucking Dave, with all the uncertanties he placed in front of Karkat like the worst kind of challenge. A challenge Karkat didn’t want, couldn’t ever overcome. Dave loomed over him like the wicked puppet master of his worries and insecurities, twisting his friends into malicious marionettes fed up with Karkat’s shit. It was only the inevitable. Karkat knew that this was-

John slammed on the breaks.

“Dammit!” John smacked the dashboard with a huff. 

Traffic was piling up as some middle aged mom in a red Kia decided to cram her car into the line when she didn’t have the right of way. John impatiently drummed on the steering wheel while he waited for the line to move alone. He just wanted to park his shitty little truck and go greet this new friend, dammit! At the very least, all this jarred Karkat out of his spiral. Karkat let out a shuddering breath, unclenching his hands from where they had clasped onto the cupholder. They were at the airport now, and everything was bustling around him. 

Parents rushed to the checked baggage with their childrens’ hands clutched in a vice. Girls in sandals and loose crop tops talked loudly on the phone, barely keeping track of their gaudy luggage. Karkat trained his eyes on one person at a time to prevent his vision from growing hazey and blinked when the fuzz from his peripheral creeped too far in.

He hated airports. Everything about them was absolutely terrible. They were crowded and confusing to navigate and the clerks at the airline stands were snippy and unhelpful. Karkat thanked the universe for allowing him to have John with him in this arduous endeavor. 

After what felt like hours, John pulled into the parking garage and found a spot on one of the upper levels. Karkat’s breathing was already labored as he worked to keep up with John’s long strides as they hurried to the elevator. Practically all of his friends were taller than him and his lack of dedication to building up any sort of stamina made it difficult to keep pace with any one of them. A small part of him hoped that Dave would be more of an equal to himself in the leg department if he was going to be forced to spend time with the man. It was enough of a chore to match John’s pace due to Egbert’s five inch height advantage, and he didn’t need another tall asshole literally holding their height advantages over his head all the time. 

Karkat placed his hand on John’s shoulder when the pair made it to the elevator which would take them to ground level. He heaved a deep breath, drawing out a snicker from John. “Dude, you’re really out of shape.”

“Thank you, John.” Karkat muttered incredulously, “I had no fucking idea that my efforts in the pursuit of physical prowess were completely and utterly lacking without that statement you just wasted three of my precious seconds to mutter into existance.” 

John was bursting with laughter. Despite himself, Karkat caught himself joking around with John as normal as ever. It was easy to forget some of the doubts still dwelling in his mind when John was making all those silly faces and volleying teasing words with Karkat all the way to baggage claim, their planned point of meet up with Dave. John and Karkat were the last of the group to arrive, and Terezi wasted no time bum rushing them. Wildly, her cane swung as she made her way over to the boys, a large grin spreading across her face. 

“John! Karkat! We thought you were gonna miss the pseudo-Lalonde’s arrival. I kept telling them you’d make it in the nick of time, but you know how they always dismiss me.” Terezi didn’t stop talking, her words rushed out in a singular, endless breath. “Just ignore Terezi, the crazy blind girl, what does she know? Everything, apparently. But I have all the knowledge, all of it.” 

John snickered easily, accepting Terezi’s hug with one of his own. The same couldn’t be said for Karkat who tried to slump out of Terezi’s strong grasp. He was always bewildered by the sheer strength Terezi was able to display. Everyone always forgot how strong she was. Apparently, Terezi hadn’t stopped talking since she noticed John and Karkat’s arrival, “If only Vriska was allowed to join us on this momentous occasion. That would make all of this perfect! Granted, I think Lalonde only invited me because she knew that it would help to get Karkles to agree to make the trip, though I believe her brother will find me quite entertaining.” 

Her voice sounded like sandpaper being grated right against Karkat’s ear, and yet he still found himself soothed by the familiarity of it. He wrestled himself out of Terezi’s grasp with much effort, leaving her to cling tighter to John, who seemed unfazed by her deathgrip on his ribcage. Karkat made a big show out of rubbing his ears in pain even though he knew Terezi couldn’t see, but he knew that through some mystical powers of the cosmos, she was still able to sense the absolute snark and theatrics rolling off Karkat in waves. 

She rolled her eyes with just as much fervor, adding in a large head movement to further prove her snark, “There’s no need to be a drama queen, Karkat.” She snorted into a deep chuckle that drew the attention of several groups of people in their vicinity. Karkat papped her arm while trying to discreetly shield his face from all the prying eyes. “Terezi, for the love of god PLEASE shut the fuck up… people are starting to stare… a-and Rose and Kanaya are probably feeling just as embarrassed as I am right now.” Karkat seethed, but it all seemed in vain if the look gracing her face was any indicator. 

Terezi took a deep breath, chest visibly expanding. 

“Oh, Karkat, how could I possibly ever even think of shutting my fuck up when I know it makes your face go absolutelty scarlet?” If people weren’t looking before, they sure are now. And it was quite the sight to be graced with. A sturdy blind girl with ridiculous red glasses almost holds a scrawny white guy in the air while she taunts a squat Filipino kid about his crippling embarrassment. Karkat hated his friends, truly. There was never an end to their vast torture, and they never ran out of ways to embarrass, humiliate, and make him want to crawl into a hole to die. 

A chorus of laughter rang out around Karkat, the boisterous giggles of John, Terezi’s grating chuckles, the quiet snickering of Rose, the soft, dignified lilting laugh of Kanaya, and someone else. A low laugh that was smooth with a subtle twang to it. The kind of laugh Karkat imagined anime Colonel Sanders from that dating sim to have. 

“Dave!” Rose’s voice rang above all the laughter as she rushed to meet her brother. 

Fuck. He was tall, kinda like a tree… but not like an oak tree,more like a palm tree or one of those narrow pine trees without all the cluttered branches. Okay, forget the tree metaphor. Point is, Dave was like a fucking highrise skyscraper, this fact only amplified by Karkat’s far below average stature.. A light spattering of freckles covered Dave’s exposed, sunburnt shoulders. Karkat thought it was the type of sunburn that would settle into a soft tan. Not anything dark enough to match his skin, or even Terezi’s for that matter, but a nice warmth that made someone look like they were glowing. Jesus, Karkat mentally smacked himself for all the drooling he was doing over this dude that he was throwing a bitchfit over meeting only ten minutes prior. Everyone was talking around him, greeting Dave, exchanging hugs, handshakes, and highfives. Karkat couldn’t focus on any of that though because he was entranced by Dave. He wanted to see his face, his eyes, what his smile was like. With uncertain glances, Karkat let his eyes slide up to Dave’s face.

Sunglasses.

Dave was wearing sunglasses in the airport. Presumably he wore them the entire plane ride too. Dave was literally the type of person to wear fucking sunglasses indoors. Any attraction Karkat felt towards Dave was out the window faster than the blink of an eye. What kind of douchebaggery does it take for someone to genuinely believe it’s okay to wear sunglasses inside? It was overcast in Washington today, and it sure as hell wasn’t sunny in the goddamn plane cabin. Present Karkat thanked past Karkat for making the decision to hate Dave before their meeting ever occured. 

Forget what John said. There was no way Karkat could ever tolerate, much less be friends with an asshole who showed up in some 2013 hipster shades to a fucking airport. 

Was Karkat overreacting? Yeah, probably. In his defense though, he couldn’t help his flare for dramatics, nor his short temper for that matter. At some point amidst all of Karkat’s inner monologuing, Dave had made his way over to where Karkat was perched on the floor, offering a hand out to help him up. Karkat jumped back, knees cracking as he did so. With folded arms Karkat gave Dave a glare which he hoped communicated all the disgust he felt towards Dave in this moment. 

“Why the fuck did you think it would be okay to wear sunglasses on a goddamn airplane? Those are so dimly lit, could you even see?” Karkat spoke before he could even process his thoughts. The smile on Dave’s face faltered for a second before a smirk overtook it. God, Karkat wanted to smack that shitty ass smirk off his stupid chiseled face - NOT chiseled… just a normal, nasty teenage boy face with stupid fucking hipster shade covering like half of it. 

Terezi reached across to grip Karkat’s shoulder, “Don’t be rude, Karkat! You’ll scare him off.” 

How dare Terezi have the gall to defend Dave! It’s just because she couldn’t see his shit eating grin or the smug look on his face. How did he even manage to look so damn smug when he wasn’t even showing his eyes? Maybe it was the stupid split eyebrow that peeked out over the top of his glasses. 

Karkat wanted to scream, and he would have if he weren’t in the middle of an airport, already wary of the attention he was drawing to himself. 

Dave laughed, reverberating the air and the entire atmosphere around him. “I’m supposed to believe that Rez is the embarrassing one when “Karkles” is over here throwing a temper tantrum about my god tier fashion ensemble?” Rez? The nickname made Karkat’s blood boil. The douche didn’t even know Terezi for more than a minute and they were already strolling their way to friendship lane at the junction of oogling street and fuck you avenue, let alone the fact that he was taunting Karkat with a nickname that he only ever let his most inner circle of friends refer to him as. Dave turned to Karkat with a patronizing smirk already at play, “Oh c’mon babe, come over here to papa, and let him swaddle you in a soft little blanket until all your bitch baby tears subside. Maybe after that we can have a little fashion montage where I can teach you about how to look as good as I do.” 

Karkat’s face flushed with fury and utter humiliation.He fumed at Dave calling himself Karkat’s “papa.” What was he thinking? Was this some kink thing? God, Karkat really hoped this wasn’t some weird kink thing that Dave getting off on embarrassing Karkat so publically with every stupid word that dripped out his mouth. This proved only to encourage Dave’s teasing, however. He began to coo and try to tuck Karkat’s hair behind his ear in a “fatherly” manner. Dave wasn’t even making sense! The more convoluted Dave’s metaphors got, the louder Karkat’s distaste became.

Eventually, Kanaya stepped in to skillfully drag Karkat away from Dave. She patted his arm whispering that they should go get something to drink. Karkat threw an angry look back at Dave, the aforementioned yelling “Papa’s gonna be waiting for you once you cry it out, don’t worry Karkles.” 

Karkat flipped him off. 

Dave pretended to catch this bird flung from Karkat’s finger tip like it was a kiss blown between star crossed lovers, pressing it tightly against his chest. Terezi and John laughed behind him, apparently enjoying the torment he was subjecting Karkat to. Dave smiled at the thought of Karkat. He was all brash words and loud gestures. He talked with his whole body and especially with his eyes. They were so expressive, widening at each of Dave’s jeers before narrowing or closing completely before he whined or screeched about whatever dumb thing had tumbled out of Dave’s mouth previously. Dave liked it. It was the opposite of his bro, or even Rose as far as straightforwardness was concerned. Whereas those two were all mystery and guessing, Karkat was an openbook, a bard singing songs of his constipated anger. This would be fun. 

“Dave, are you even listening to me?” Rose pulled him out of his thoughts. Dave whistled a questioning hmm, making Rose sigh. “As I’m sure you can already tell, Karkat has a bit of a um… short fuse.” Dave snickered at her phrasing because Karkat really was quite small. “So, I think it would be rather beneficial for the entirety of the group if you would attempt some semblance of peace with him. If not for your ears’ sake, then for your poor sister’s sake as Kanaya would be rather troubled to discover that her girlfriend’s brother was now the personal tormentor of one of her best friends.” Dave sighed dramatically. Leaving Karkat alone wouldn’t be any fun, and it meant Dave wouldn’t get to make that little freckled face flush like that. God, Dave kind forgot how good it was to just mess around with people. He’d really only talked to his bro recently, in person that is. It was invigorating to see how his words fired Karkat up. Invigorating and also hilarious. 

“I suppose I can keep things cordial… sometimes.” Dave smirked, refusing to let up completely but relenting a little bit on the harshness front. It seemed as though Rose accepted that this was the best she was gonna get. She contented herself with typing out a message to someone, probably Kanaya, and walked off. Feeling the need to occupy himself, Dave turned to the only two people left to bother.

He knew John. They’d talked a couple times after Rose had introduced the two. The kid was funny, a little awkward, but what teenager wasn’t? Dave was still slightly unnerved to not be around Rose, but John’s warm smile made up for that, and he was excited to get to know Terezi. Within a matter of seconds she was all up in his biz, like a bloodhound sniffing out wild game in the forest, and Dave happened to be the juiciest deer in the whole woods. For a second, Dave even thought she was going to lick stripe up his cheek. That certainly wouldn’t have fended well against Dave’s devout bought with acne. Instead, she just kinda… sniffed him… like literally. She had said he smelled like cherry coke, which was odd, but at least it let Dave know he wouldn’t be bored in his new little hometown. 

That had been a concern, of course. Dave had had so much to do in Huston, when he could actually get out of the house, but La Conner was small. Dave hadn’t even heard about it before connecting with Rose. At least he’d only have to drive an hour to get to Seattle if there was jack shit to do in La Conner, granted he’d have to ask mom to borrow the car. Mom. It still felt weird on his tongue to call her mom. Mom was like La Conner, Dave hadn’t known that she existed until Rose hunted his ass down. Dave was thankful for that, even if he wouldn’t outwardly express it. 

A hot breath hit his face again. Dave turned to see Terezi a couple inches from his face. How long had he just been sitting there thinking?He quirked an eyebrow at her jack-o-lantern-esque smile. “Dave, I don’t mind if you play bully Karkat until he’s a blushing mess, personally, that’s my favorite game. It’s so easy to win too.” Dave laughed, egging her on to tell him all about the joys of driving Karkat crazy. Happily, Terezi obliged with John soon adding in his own anecdotes from years past. Apparently Karkat had been extremely sensitive to teasing ever since he was a kid.

“He used to ruin our playdates by wailing to my mom about how we hurt his little feelings.” Terezi snorted at the memory.

“Oh,” John perked up, “do you remember the time we were messing around at the park, around sixth grade or so, and Karkat declared himself king?” 

Terezi let out a howl of laughter, “Oh yeah, and he scrambled up to the top of the jungle gym when we said we were gonna throw a coup d’etat against him.” She turned swiftly, wheezing between giggles and gathering her breath. “Dave, Karkat was too scared to get down that we had to call his older brother to climb up there and get him.” Both Terezi and John were bursting at the seams, even Rose’s face was quirked into a smile from overhearing these stories.  
“For a second we thought Terezi was going to have to be his knight in shining jorts, but he’d squawk out insults if Tez or I got anywhere near the jungle gym, that’s why we had to call Kankri. The poor guy had to wrestle with Karkat just to get him down. Kankri came out with a black eye, and Karkat got one hell of a scolding afterwards. Terezi and I couldn’t control our laughter.”

Somehow Dave found himself relishing in the memory as though it was one he could share, like he was right there, laughing on the ground with John and Terezi. He wished he could’ve been with them. This sounded a lot more fun than what he had gotten up to in Texas. Anything sounded better than training with his brother nowadays though. 

After a few more minutes of sharing Karkat stories, the conversation drifted more into small talk territory. They idly chatted while Rose typed on her phone. Shortly, Rose made her way towards a seating area near a couple shops and convenience stores within the airport. She threw a look over her shoulder to tell Terezi that she was going to get Kanaya’s van ready for packing since John and Dave were too distracted by discussing their favorite movies to listen to her. 

As Dave and John finsihed up their movie discussion, Terezi grasped Dave and John’s hands, simultaneously yanking them in the direction that Kanaya had pulled Karkat off to earlier. She rambled off something about retrieving Captain Grumpy and his faithful babysitter before venturing to Rose’s house. Dave felt… comforted by the whole deal. It was odd because Dave hadn’t known the two long, but he’d never had friends his age before. Terezi and John wanted to talk to him and joke around and he was allowed to joke back. He didn’t have to watch what he said, even though he still found himself overthinking sometimes. Old habits die hard, I guess. With friends by his side, he braced himself for the impact that would be another fruitful interaction with Karkat. 

Speaking of Karkat, he sat slumped in a small plastic chair across the table from Kanaya, some fancy tea in hand. It was funny to watch the two of them since Kanaya was grace and dignity while Karkat mirrored that of a petulant six year old who just got chewed out by his mom after hiding in the women’s underwear department ten minutes before the Walmart closed. Even from this distance, Dave could hear the hoarse words Karkat spoke. Something about shoehorning assholes seemed to be the topic of conversation. Delicately, Kanaya crossed her hand over her throat to signal that Karkat should shut up as her eyes caught sight of Dave, a signal Karkat was completely oblivious to. 

Against better judgement, Dave shook his hand out of Terezi’s grasp so he could make his way over to Kanaya and Karkat. Kanaya appeared to be trying to snap Karkat’s attention back to her while he rambled. His words came out in annoyed rasps, almost as if he wasn’t giving himself time to breathe between rants. Kanaya gripped Karkat’s hand hard when Dave was close enough to fully understand what Karkat was saying; however, she didn’t act fast enough to cut off Karkat’s latest tirade.

“-like he’s already giving out nicknames! What a fucking dick, am I right?” Karkat grumbled, straw poking out of the corner of his mouth. 

Dave stopped dead in his tracks, a witty comment died on the tip of his tongue.

Oh, Karkat was ranting about Dave. He faltered, unsure of what smooth joke to make to ease into this situation. Should he cough? Alert Karkat to his looming presence in a more overt way than Kanaya’s subtleties because it was obvious that Karkat didn’t take subtlety very well? Dave went with a cough. It came out louder, shakier than he intended. 

“Damn, who could this dickwad be?” Luckily, his voice didn’t waiver like he feared it would when he spoke. Karkat turned around, shock written all over his face with a tinge of guilt. The guilt was only evident if you were staring into his eyes for the split second before he regained himself. His eyes always seemed to give him away.

Dave laughed, deeply and only a little forced, trying so hard to tell Karkat that it was okay. Try as he might, Karkat still looked down at his legs, idly picking the lint off his pants. Dave tried to busy himself by looking around the room, anywhere except Karkat’s burning face.. Both parties were just glad that by then the rest of the group had left to pack Dave’s bags into Kanaya’s van. 

Almost simultaneously, Dave and Karkat remembered Kanaya’s presence, both of their heads snapping over to gauge her feelings on the situation. The movement startled her, quickly pulling her scolding gaze away from Karkat and morphing into an awkward smile. She showed too much teeth for the smile to be genuine, and her posture was too rigid. It looked like the tension was constricting Kanaya as much as it held Dave and Karkat. This appeared to be an utterly awkward ménage à trois where two of the participants decided to gossip about the third one during the middle of a heated makeout. It was… uncomfortable for all those involved to say the least.

Time passed way too slowly in awkward silence. Kanaya looked like she wanted to excuse herself, eyes warily scanning her surroundings. Dave felt sorry. He sent an apologetic smile her way. It went unnoticed. 

Karkat shoved his hair away from his face, not meeting Dave’s eyes, His chest constricted with the need to breathe, the need to release the tension in the air. Karkat knew he needed to apologise, but he couldn’t force an apology out of his dry throat. He looked to Kanaya for help, but she wasn’t faring any better. Nimble hands tugged at the ends of her sleeves. Kanaya would only ever tug at any fabric subconsciously and only if she was particularly uncomfortable.

Karkat mentally screamed himself to fix this awkward stalemate. None of them moved or spoke. Dave wouldn’t look at Karkat, and Karkat certainly wouldn’t chance a glance at Dave unless it was to apologize for that display of pure assholery he just pulled. But Karkat didn’t apologize, rather he opened up the floodgates that held back his nervous rambling, suddenly flooding the silent atmosphere with noise. “Yeah, it’s just some shitty character from this book I was reading. Um, Kanaya and I sometimes switch books, so I was telling her about this one that I had read earlier to see if it was one she’d be interested in. It’s like our own little book club. Kind of sad when you think about a two person book club, really, but we like it. Er, I like it… I can’t speak for Kanaya.” Karkat continued his ramble, louder than a normal person would speak, but eerily quiet for Karkat volumes, not that Dave was able to tell. All Dave could catch onto was the stiffer posture and skittery nature of his speech. Kanaya reached out a hand to pat Karkat’s arm to quiet him down. “You’re rambling again, Karkat. It’s his first day, I don’t think Dave is ready to go on one of the adventures that is an exploration of your latest fictitious escapades.” 

Dave laughed again, less forced, more real. “Nah dude, lay it on me! Pour that sweet, sweet literature honey all over my bod. Massage it into my skin like you’re my German masseuse named Helga. Really drive that rising action into my shoulder blades like a characterization deep tissue, bro.” Slowly, Karkat’s face lifted, no longer weighed down by the guilt. A groan slipped out of him as Karkat raked his fingers down his face. Kanaya too, dropped her shoulders, the beginnings of a laugh bubbling up.

“I think I should just rip my eardrums out. I don’t know how long I can take this. First it was the daddy stuff, now I’m supposed to be massaging my literary knowledge into you like the worst fucking erotica ever written. Kanaya end me now, please.” There was laughter behind his glaring words, and it made Dave smile. Karkat was playing along this time. The tension slipped out of everything, Karkat’s shoulders, Kanaya’s posture, the air around the trio.

“Oh baby, you want erotica? I can hook you up with some… but you can’t tell my dealer. I’m getting a wicked deal on this primo sex paper, and if this got out I’d never get my sweet narrative pornography for these awesome deals again. I don’t know what I’d do if I couldn’t read about the torrid affairs of Fabio and Cassandra. I just have to know what’s getting down and dirty in the stables, bro.” Kanaya held a hand over her mouth while she laughed while Karkat, on the other hand, reared his ugly pissed off head about to explode again only to be stopped by Rose telling them that the car was packed and that John was antsy to get on the road again. 

Dave slapped a hand on Karkat’s back, knocking the breath out of him. “Looks like we’ll have to continue the porno talk later, but I thought this was a real good start. I can feel our friendship blossoming.” Karkat’s only reply was a low grumble as he shook Dave’s hand off his back. The group walked out the door. 

Terezi waved the group over as they approached Kanaya’s van. Karkat expected to drop Dave off there before he headed up the last couple of levels where John was parked. Karkat pouted when Rose informed him that Dave would actually be riding with John and him while Dave, on the other hand, perked up at this news. Of course he would. Karkat didn’t quite understand how Dave was acting so chill after catching Karkat blatantly shit talking him a couple minutes ago. Karkat knew Dave wasn’t that dense, but he couldn’t be this forgiving, right? Maybe he would make Karkat pay for it later. Karkat didn’t know what flavor of revenge Dave was into. He could’ve been one of those passive aggressive types for all he knew. 

Something told him that Dave really wasn’t the passive aggressive type, nor was he going to try to make Karkat pay for venting his frustrations. 

Still, Karkat had a bitchy attitude to uphold. If Dave wasn’t going to act weird about what happened earlier, then neither would Karkat. “Why the fuck do we have to ride with him? Kanaya’s van has so much more room! Doesn’t Dave want to be with his stuff?” Karkat’s voice echoed throughout the parking garage, still upset at the fact he was about to be crammed into John’s truck, pressed up against Dave for an entire hour. 

“Sorry, Karkles,” Terezi patted his cheek, “but Dave’s got, quite frankly, a ton of shit considering he had to move all of his stuff here from Texas, so all of the spare room in Kanaya’s van has been taken up by the red cacophony of dear David’s belongings. You’ll just have to suck it up for an hour because I already asked to trade you places, but Rose said no.” Terezi pouted in the general direction of Rose. Rose, overhearing the two, paused her conversation with Dave and Kanaya to wave sweetly. Her smile hid a scheming glint behind it, and she gave Kanaya a conspiring glance. Karkat couldn’t stand when the co-conspirators planned together because it normally involved him, and often it wasn’t a favorable outcome by Karkat’s standards.

“Fuck, fine, whatever. I’ve suffered through worse.” Karkat matched her pout, rivaled it even. Terezi gave him an exaggerated sigh before venturing off to find Rose and Kanaya. Rose nudged her brother towards Karkat, the latter groaning at their impending walk to John’s truck.

“Come, my good man. Let us venture off into this concrete jungle in search of adventure.” Dave offered up his arm like Karkat was the finest lass at the debutante ball. Karkat rolled his eyes, briskly shuffling past Dave, paying his silly comment no mind.

Slowly, Karkat dragged himself over to John’s truck with Dave in tow. At least he’d have the view of the trees and the smell of the rain soaked dirt to distract him from Dave’s bullshittery. At least, he thought he would. But this plan was soon shattered once the two approached the truck. Dave, in true gentleman fashion, opened the side door of the truck with a flourishing arm gesture and a deep bow. Karkat stood, unimpressed. Dave could not be serious right now. Oh, Dave was incredibly serious though. He hadn’t lifted his head from his bow and presumably wouldn’t straighten up again until Karkat got in the vehicle, and Karkat wouldn’t stand for this.

“Why do I have to sit in the fucking middle? It’s not even a seat.”

“Karkat,” John sighed, “it is a seat with a fully functional seat belt and everything. Besides, I hate to break it to you, but your legs are so incredibly tiny compared to mine and Dave's. Just sit down, dude.” 

No, Karkat was not putting up with this. He had been through enough of Dave’s shit in the short time they’d known each other, and he refused to sit through an hour of Dave jabbing his midsection while he prattled on about like sick raps about cows. Dave waggled his eyebrows mischievously, still bowing at the side of the door. Karkat was about to let out another string of curses and fits, because all of his tantrums had been so helpful today, when his phone let out a quiet ping. His mouth snapped shut while he fished his phone out of his hoodie pocket. Two messages from Kanaya greeted him tauntingly from his dim phone screen.

\-- grimAuxiliatrix [GA] began pestering carcinoGeneticist [CG] --

GA: Dearest Karkat  
GA: Play Nice Please

\-- grimAuxiliatrix [GA] ceased pestering carcinoGeneticist [CG] --

Fuck.


	2. Play Nice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That super fun car ride John, Karkat, and Dave spend together in the cramped cab of John's shitty old truck.

In retrospect, no one should have been surprised when Karkat immediately decided to hate Dave with every cell in his short, little body. Dave’s personality was one that Karkat could either immediately volley with or one that would irk him and get under his skin for years to come. Obviously, the latter was true if Karkat’s perpetual scowl from being jostled between John and Dave shed any light on the situation. 

Was he being unreasonable? Karkat didn’t think so. He especially didn’t think any of his bitching was unreasonable when Dave’s elbow was jabbing directly into his ribs. Dave had some really sharp elbows too. He could already feel a bruise coming and was about to burst into one of his dramatic bouts to tell his companions all about his discomfort when John spoke up.

“Karkat, I can tell you’re about to fly into a theatrical bitchfit, and I would really prefer we don’t open that can of worms on Dave’s first day, so let’s play a little game!” Dave gave a little chuckle at this, earning him one of Karkat’s elbows to his forearm. 

“Shut the fuck up, Egbert,” Karkat vamped, “I’m not that easy to read, nor was I about to fly into a bitchfit.” Karkat was lying through his teeth. What can he say? He was pissed that John was able to read him like a book. Karkat wasn’t an open book… he was like a diary. One of those tacky diaries for twelve year old girls named Tiffany that come with a lock and key. Except Tiffany lost the key to her shitty twelve dollar diary from Target, so she discarded the lock a long time ago. This metaphor is stupid, and Karkat could feel his braincells dying the longer he tried to develop it. 

John paid no mind to Karkat’s defense, drawing out a tiny frown from Karkat as he grumbled out a small, “Just explain your stupid game, John.” 

John smiled, glancing quickly to Karkat, playfully elbowing him before returning his gaze to the road. “Okay, so, Dave here is new, and we should really get to know each other! Dave and I have talked a little bit, but you two barely know each other.” John flashed a cheeky smile that made Karkat’s stomach roll at the implications of its intent. “And you’re elbowing each other like you’re about to go on a hatedate, so I figured the two of you should talk it out before you get all spades-y on each others asses.” John and Dave burst out into uproarious laughter. Unamused, Karkat boiled under the surface. Why the fuck did Egbert think it was okay to go on about shit Karkat made up in middle school? Around a stranger no less! A stranger, who was laughing his ass off despite having zero context to this “hilarious” joke John had made. Karkat slouched further in his seat, begging it to swallow him into oblivion before anyone asked him to explain the joke.

“What the fuck is a hatedate?” 

Sweet Jesus. Dave’s voice came out strangled with laughter and a lack of oxygen. Karkat was going to commit manslaughter, starting with the catalyst of all this, John Egbert. Swiftly followed by the douche supreme himself, Dave. However, John’s nasally voice interjected Karkat’s murder plans in the worst way possible. “I think you should ask Karkat. He kinda coined the term afterall.”

John Egbert would die a slow, painful death for the mortification he was putting his poor friend through. Dave, taking John’s advice of course, leaned down to coo in Karkat’s face. 

“Sweetie, will you pretty please tell me all about this hatedate. Please Karkles, I’m jonsin’ to know.” 

Arms crossed, Karkat side-eyed John first before giving Dave a sharp glare. “Would love to, but,” Karkat gritted his teeth, “I have no idea what that is.”

Pouting, Dave opened his mouth to complain, but John beat him to it. “Party foul, Karkat.” John chirped, “You know we require absolutely candid honesty when we play Under Oath.”

Karkat rolled his eyes, untensing his shoulders slightly. “You did not say we were playing this bullshit game. No, I’m not playing this. This isn’t an interview, and you’re not fucking Vogue, John.” Too many times had Karkat been subjected to this stupid, neverending game with John. The first time he had met John was actually by playing this game while their dad’s talked. Past Karkat had learned far too much about the kid in that short span, and present Karkat wasn’t too keen on learning the same amount of information about Dave. He was even more adamant on not letting Dave learn about himself.

“C’mon, don’t be a sourpuss, Kat.” Dave was testing him. It was obvious by the shit eating grin on his face. His face was inches away from Karkat’s, making his cheeks flush at the proximity. Dave was a brave man because the two would definitely smack their lips together in some ceremonial semblance of a smooch if John hit a bump too hard or took a turn too fast. Not that he was focusing so much on Dave’s lips or possibly having his lips meet Dave’s lips. God, Karkat needed to get a grip. He didn’t even like Dave because Dave was an asshole, yet Karkat still found his lonely ass wanting some one on one time with Dave’s stupid chapped lips. He could feel his own face heating up, so he supposed it was time for Dave to get the hell out of his personal bubble. Karkat squirmed away as best he could, allotting for several more inches between his lips and Dave’s. “You have no idea how many times I’ve had to play this “game” with him. It isn’t even really a game. It’s just hours of asking pointless questions, and it always gets too personal.” 

Dave ventured back into Karkat’s space. What was his problem? When Karkat glanced back up Dave was all close again, and he felt his face light up like a Christmas tree as Dave whispered, “Maybe I wanna get all up close and personal with your kinky hatedate shit. Hatedate me, Karkie, take me in your hateful grasp and hate the shit out of me.” He lost his serious act about halfway through spouting his nonsense when John started to snicker. It flustered Karkat nonetheless. 

Apparently, Karkat’s flushed face and squirmy posture satiated Dave’s sick sadistic endgame as he leaned back with a placcid look on his shaded face. Fuck him. Karkat focused on breathing and willing away the blush on his face, especially before it spread to his ears. 

John was the first to regain control of himself since Dave was too busy basking in asshole glory. “I don’t want any more complaints out of you, Karkat. Under Oath is a brilliant game, and we’re playing it.” John didn’t even let Karkat make a sound of protest before he continued, “The rules are simple, Dave. We each take turns asking the others questions. Questions can be posed to the group as a whole or to one in particular. You will answer with honesty, no exceptions, and you will be called out on your bullshit if anyone detects an ounce of falsehood. Normally Terezi acts as our dutiful judge in our pursuit of truth, but the honor code still stands in her absence. Lastly, retaliation questions are encouraged. So boys, ask away.”

Dave was pretty sure John must have come up with this little game after watching the “Full Disclosure” scene from the Addams Family musical for the first time, but it sounded like fun, especially once he thought of more questions to tease Karkat with. To say Karkat’s squirming was entertaining was an understatement because watching him was funnier than daytime television, and Dave wanted to take every shot at that bullseye as the hour long car ride would allow. 

“Question for both, have you always lived here?” Dave was letting Karkat off easy here. Letting him take a breather before he smacked Karkat upside the head with that hatedate stuff. 

Karkat nodded along to what John said, “Yeah. Our dad’s actually went to school here too, so we were kinda destined to be friends. Oh, also Terezi’s mom lived here before going to law school, but obviously she came back.” In the span of time it took John to take a breath, Karkat smacked a hand on his arm as if to say, “dude, you’re rambling so much and talking way more than needed.” John understood, shutting his trap swiftly. 

“Are you always so much of a douche? Question for Dave.” Karkat mumbled with an eye roll.

Dave tapped his fingers together in faux nervousness, “Only when I see someone pretty.” 

“Bullshit, party foul, whatever. The only answer to that question is yes, and you know it.”

Dave laughed as he jeered Karkat. This was already more fun than he was expecting to have. See, the thing about Karkat was that he was so easy to read. Dave checked him out like a library book and read him cover to cover in five minutes flat. He could already tell some of the things that egged the boy on, things that made him tick. Top of the list was fake flirting, followed shortly by getting all up in his grill. 

Dave had mildly spaced out, but he only realized this when John asked if he was listening to him. 

“Absolutely not, dude. However, I believe that takes up your turn, and we’ve circled back to me. Mr. Karkles, do you think I have big peepee energy?”

John pouted while Karkat rolled his eyes. “I’m not obligated to answer this question because you didn’t answer John’s original question; thus, the question wasn’t satisfied, and I refuse to play to the whims of a dirty cheater.” Dave gave a suggestive smile when Karkat said dirty. It earned him an elbow from Karkat that tickled more than it hurt.   
“I guess you got me there, but I’ll be circling back to that question. What did you want to know again, John?” 

John smiled, “Just wanted to know where you lived before Washington.”

Dave tensed, but quickly calmed himself down before his mouth twitched into a betraying tight line. He relaxed his shoulders, preparing to put on his most outrageous Texan accent, “Pardner, I’m from good ‘ole Hustoun, Texas.” Dave mimed tipping his hat like the most gentlemanly gentleman. Both boys to his left scoffed, although Karkat’s huff was more annoyed where John’s was humored. “As I was saying before,” Dave laughed, “How big do you think my dangle is, Karkat.”

Without missing a beat, Karkat muttered, “One inch, hard.” 

Dave thought he was shaking the entire truck with how hard he was laughing. Karkat sat unchanged by it all, even when Dave slapped his shoulder as he tried to fight back the tears. This was something he never got back in Texas… not that he had talked to very many people in Texas. Get those thoughts out of here. This isn’t Texas. Dave had to remind himself that he was miles away from everything in that hellhole. 

“Question for John.” Karkat snapped, thankfully pulling Dave from his thoughts. “Why are we playing this game?”

“I already answered that question. That was basically a waste of a turn, and thus no fun.” John gave his friend a pathetic frown that went unacknowledged. Something told Dave that Karkat didn’t really care about how he was wasting his turns. As long as Karkat kept asking all these “useless” questions, Dave could stay in the present and not think about Texas. God. He was doing it again. 

“Dave and Karkat, full introductions of yourself. Name, age, two fun facts.”

“That’s not a question.” Karkat fussed. 

“Yes it was, I used the questioning inflection in my tone. Notice how my voice pitched up at the end, that means I’ve asked a question, sassypants.”

“This is stupid, but fine. I’ll disregard your flagrant ignorance of the rules.” Karkat blew a curl from his forehead. It fell back further in his eyes. “Karkat Vantas, seventeen, I hate this bullshit game, and I hate you, Egbert.” 

Dave smiled. It wasn’t one of the calculated smiles he crafted to show how aloof and mysterious he was, but one caused by the genuine entertainment he got from Karkat’s bickering. “Dave Strider, eighteen, I can rap the sickest fires, and I’d have the biggest homo crush on Barack Obama if that wouldn’t be incredibly gay.” Dave observed how Karkat bristled at the fact Dave was older than him. Just one more thing Dave could hold above him. This probably meant Karkat was born in 2002, which was peak bullying material. Dave filed this fact for later. 

“You’re not a Lalonde? But aren’t you Rose’s brother?” Karkat asked, lacking any bite in favor of actual confusion. 

“I believe it’s not your turn, Karkat.” Dave replied. “So, those questions will have to wait. I have a query for you though, do you always have a stick shoved up your ass?”

Karkat rolled his eyes, deciding to answer Dave’s question with one of his own, “Are you always such an insufferable prick?” 

Dave’s mouth quirked up with the vollying teases. All rules were ignored, John’s little “get to know you” game be damned. “Do you have to be such a stick in the mud, Kitkat? What crawled up your ass and died?”

Karkat grumbled some grievances under his breath. Before he could retort, Dave was already speaking again, his words rolling out before he could actually process what he was saying. “Actually, I have a question for John now. How do you stand to be around him all the time when he’s such a pissy crybaby about everything?” 

This shut Karkat up, but not in the way where he normally had to take a moment to process everything to think up the sickest burn. His whole demeanor shifted under Dave’s gaze, eyes glossing over and shoulders hunched in around himself. He looked small. Smaller than normal since he was generally quite a bit shorter than everyone else, but this was different. 

Dave chanced a glance to John, but he gave no sign that Dave was approaching a danger zone. However, Karkat’s posture undermined John’s coolness. It made Dave want to frown. Fuck. He hadn’t wanted to make Karkat upset. It was just supposed to be some bantering between bros. Dave wanted to reach out and pat his shoulder. That was stupid. When does patting someone’s shoulders ever actually comfort them? Dave was just sorta rambling in his head because the truck was silent and Karkat was still all curled up on himself, showing no signs of saying anything for the next century. 

After what felt like a lifetime of awkward silence, John finally muttered something to Karkat, too quiet for Dave to hear. John reached out an arm to wrap around Karkat’s shoulders. Karkat still didn’t look up. John squeezed Karkat’s shoulders in a sort of side hug as he mumbled another reassuring phrase. Dave only caught the “I’ll always love you, buddy” at the end before John slipped his arm off Karkat’s slouched shoulders. 

Dave had gotten himself into some deep shit. 

His mouth flapped open and closed for a while like a fish out of water as he tried to muster up an apology. Dejectedly, he resigned himself to an apologetic look that Karkat couldn’t even see from his curled up position. Dave wanted to smack himself in the forehead, his apparent frustration showing with each second he wasted being a silent douchebag instead of apologizing for his assholery.

“Don’t beat yourself up too bad, Dave.” John glanced at him sympathetically, “He gets pouty like this. Don’t worry Karkat, I’ll let you sit out for the rest of the game. You can curl up and brood.”

Despite the teasing, Karkat sighed a breath of relief. He drew his knees up to his chest, but he didn’t look as tense. 

The minutes passed treacherously as Dave and John shared questions and answers. They were simple things, trivial facts. What’s your favorite band? Dave said himself. John liked some folksy dude from the 1980s that his dad was obsessed with in highschool. What’s your favorite color? Fire engine red for Dave and John’s was navy blue. Dave found himself staring at Karkat more than he was paying attention to John’s questions, but neither Karkat nor John seemed to notice.

He was worried about Karkat. They hadn’t known each other for long, but this was the first time Dave felt like he couldn’t read Karkat. His quiet pouts and blank stares starkly contrasted the Karkat from the airport that was fuming. It even contrasted the Karkat from a couple minutes ago. Dave stilled himself before he spiraled into comparing the composure of Karkat’s mere minutes apart, and tried to refocus his attention on the conversation with John. His efforts were in vain, however, as he could barely keep enough attention to reply to John’s questions with short responses, all of them clipped at the end so Dave wouldn’t have to put so much effort into keeping his voice level. 

If John noticed, he didn’t say anything about it. John tried his best to keep the tone light, but Dave could tell he was straining. What Dave didn’t notice was how John’s questions were shifting to something more personal. Then it was laid out in front of him. 

“What was Texas like?”

It should have been an easy question. Normal kids are able to talk about their hometowns and the places they used to live. There wasn’t anything normal about Dave’s upbringing though. Having to horde food in your room as a necessity wasn’t normal and neither was daily sparring matches with a man twice your size. It wasn’t here though. He wasn’t here. And how could John know if Dave was lying or not if Dave just kept his cool? 

“It was kinda boring.” Dave settled into his normal apathetic attitude. Steely body language and a voice that didn’t give away anything to the undertones beneath his words. Ironically, his change in attitude probably gave away more about his feelings than he ever let on when he was joking around, but John wasn’t known for ever being too observant. 

“That’s not fair, Dave. That’s so not enough information! You gotta give me more, dude.”

Dave sighed. What did John want to hear? Did he want to know that Dave’s own father refused to be a dad and wanted to act like Dave’s brother? Did he want to hear about how that supremely messed with Dave’s head? How Dave craved a father figure or any sort of parent to actually man the fuck up and take care of him instead of forcing him to “be strong” and to raise himself? 

Dave’s heart raced as he tried to piece together a statement that wouldn’t let John know about how he was about to lie through his teeth. For a moment he thanked God that Karkat was checked out of this conversation because he was so perceptive. He would’ve called Dave out on his bullshit. John was oblivious. He couldn’t tell when Dave was pulling shit out his ass. At least that’s what Dave told himself in reassurance. 

“Well, it was just Bro and I.” Dave looked out the window while he spoke. “We had this little apartment, but it wasn’t all that bad. Uh, I tried to join a couple sports teams in school, but those really weren’t for me.” Dave was being far too honest for his liking, so he switched gears. “I was way more into chicks. You know, as a Strider, I was the biggest ladies man. I couldn’t keep the girls off of me.” On the outside, Dave let out a cool chuckle, but his eyes flashed with fear behind his glasses. Dave would not be delving into the fact that Bro would interrogate him for hours if he even mentioned a hot girl from school. 

John laughed and Dave really wished he could’ve seen Karkat roll his eyes, call him an idiot. Dave wasn’t thinking about himself anymore, too distracted by the quiet boy at his side to monitor his words. Normally he’d never open up the conversation to the topic. Initiating this topic always leads to the questions being reciprocated, but Dave’s awareness was too low. “What’s your family like?”

John lit up immediately, going on anecdote after anecdote about his dad and Nanna. They sounded so sweet and loving. John would always insist that nothing annoyed him more than the weekend bakeoffs he spent with his guardians, but the affection in his voice was undeniable. His Nanna allegedly taught him how to make the tastiest salted caramel cookies in the entire universe, but he said Dave could be the judge of that. There was a poignant pang in Dave’s chest as he listened, something like longing and dread colliding in his heart. His skin felt tight and something burned behind his eyes. If you asked him, Dave would claim he wasn’t fighting back tears. 

Dave imagined what it would’ve been like to be in John’s shoes. The delicately wrinkled face of a grandmother looking up at him with pride while his dad gave him a pat on the shoulder, a “good job, son” sitting on his lips. Dave bit his lip, hoping that the pain wouldn’t show. The only thing Dave ever learned to cook was what he could cram in the microwave, and the only thing he learned from Bro was how to fight and keep his cool. Bro would be disappointed if he saw Dave right now, struggling to keep his composure when no one could even see him. John was focused on the road and Karkat hadn’t looked up from his knees once in the past ten minutes.

What would Bro say? He’d say Dave was weak, among other things. A fucking pansy and disgrace to the Strider name. Fuck, no. Bro wasn’t here. Honestly, why was Dave even calling him Bro anymore. That was his dad, and something in Dave lit up at the fact that he had some kind of responsibility for Dave.

It all came crashing down when John spoke. “So, what’s your family like? I mean, I obviously know about Rose and your mom, but I mean your… brother, right?” 

Dave tensed. The rebellious flames his chest dissipated as all the tightness returned. The air became thick in his lungs. When did the heat in the truck ramp up? Dave fiddled with the window as visions of a wicked grin flashed before his closed eyes. Cracked lips parting over crooked teeth. Fists flying dangerously close to Dave’s jaw all for the sake of “training.” The words “Man up” uttered into the stale air. 

“He wasn’t my brother. I called him Bro, but he was actually my dad.” Dave wanted to lie, but what was the point? It certainly piqued John’s interest though. “Yeah, he really wanted to seem cool. He’s even cooler than I am, if you can believe that.” It felt like acid leaving his throat to say that about Bro, but John seemed completely enthralled. He urged Dave to keep talking about his totally awesome Bro-Dad, so Dave wracked his brain for some kind of anecdote he could spin to satiate John while still not giving the other boy too much information. It used to be so easy to think of good things to say about Bro. When Dave was a kid, he couldn’t shut up about how cool his bro was. It wasn’t until he connected with Rose that he realised how messed up things were. It took a long time, but Rose was the best therapist without a degree out there, not that Dave made it an easy case for her. 

Years of denial piled up on top of each other until Rose finally called him out, no more subtleties. Dave had never heard her so worked up over anything until that night on their fifthteenth birthday. Rose had ended her party early to call Dave so they could wish each other happy birthday. Dave had let his defences down that night, finally taking his shades off in front of someone. There was still a screen between the two, and neither of their laptops had the best resolution, but it was a huge step for Dave. It also allowed Rose to finally see how wired Dave was. How skittish he looked as he constantly shifted to glance over his shoulders. 

Rose asked if Dave was worried about his dad walking in, she never called him Bro. Dave kept his composure for all of two seconds as he stumbled over some lame excuse for his behavior. His stuttering nonsense led to the first of the tears which painfully slipped past his closed eyes, then it was like the floodgates opened. Apparently, that also applied to his voice because he was seemingly spouting every feeling he’s ever had. They sat for hours, Dave’s voice hushed as to not wake Bro up while Rose spoke calmly to settle Dave’s nerves. Her words were calculated, but not uncaring. The low timbre of her slow speech was soothing too. Everything Dave said was erratic and uncoordinated, but Rose paid no mind to the neuroticism of it all. She let him speak, taking however long he needed to get his thoughts across. 

Dave had been quiet for far too long, and it left John a little worried. The sincerity in John’s eyes was too much. They barely knew each other, so how could John actually look at him like that. Dave pushed his glasses up with a scoff, barely able to cover up the quivering of his lips. “Sorry, just got to thinking about all the cool shit Bro and I got up to.” Apathy dripped through Dave’s tone. 

John nodded with a hum, obviously not convinced. His fingers tapped idly while they sat at a stoplight, red bouncing off every surface in the car. Dave shifted so he wouldn’t have to see John’s sympathetic looks. John was apparently done with the rules of his game too because he was the only one asking questions anymore. His voice was quiet, too soft and too genuine when he spoke. “Dave,” He paused, considering his words carefully, “Why did you leave Texas?”

There it was, the inevitable. Dave knew everyone would be curious. They hadn’t known that Rose had an estranged twin brother, and now he was living here out of the blue. Dave hadn’t exactly prepared a cover story. That’s not typically something you do when you leave everything behind on a whim. 

He didn’t exactly leave on a whim though, did he? 

Ever so gently, John prompted him with a soft, “Dave?”

Why did he leave?

“I wanted a change. I wanted to connect with my mom and sister too.” It wasn’t exactly a lie, moreso just the tip of the iceberg, and Dave had a feeling John didn’t want to dive into the freezing depths, nor did Dave particularly want to dive into them either. At least not out loud where John could hear, but his internal monologue was another story. Dave couldn’t fight off the onslaught of images coursing through his head, wounds too fresh to forget after such a short timespan. 

Behind his shades with his eyes squeezed shut, Dave was in his dusty Texas apartment after school. The late afternoon sunlight shone through the thin curtains, heating up his skin with the lack of an air conditioner. He knew he was gonna eat it as soon as Bro got home. So, he was just trying to give himself time to relax before the shit hit the fan. 

The worst of it was that Dave didn’t even mean any of it. He had just been joking around with a friend, like all highschoolers did. Dave hadn’t actually meant what he said because he wasn’t...like that. Bro taught him early on that that wasn’t how Striders rolled. 

In the present, Dave felt sick, his stomach twisting around all the slurs Bro had slung his way. Before that day, Bro had never said them seriously. They were always jokes that Dave would give a stuttering denial to. They’d laugh about it, but Dave wasn’t laughing anymore. He wasn’t laughing with Bro looming over him, knuckles bound in thick hand wraps. 

He could still recall the ringing in his ears, how he tried to read Bro’s lips in the moment. The snarl of lips over yellow teeth. The stench of alcohol and grease on his breath as he spoke, it was just as nauseating in a memory as it was in the moment.

He remembered the look of his placid stare reflected in his assailants glasses. The tense set of his jaw, determined not to cry, not to wince, or show any emotion.

Dave wanted nothing more than to smack those stupid fucking glasses off his dad. What he would’ve given in that moment to not have to stare at himself. His chest bubbled with anger until it was spilling word vomit like toxic sewage. “Asshole” and “Coward” seethed out between Dave’s teeth with unbridled rage. At some point in his haze of fury he had asked if this made Bro feel big. If this was his training session before Dave became a “real” man. 

Dave cringed in his seat at the memory. Even when he’d said it, he knew what effect his words would cause. He reached up under his glasses to pinch the bridge of his nose, breath quickening the tiniest bit.

The sun had stung his uncovered eyes through the thin curtains lining his bedroom windows. He couldn’t decipher what was more unrelenting, the hot Texan sun or his father. Time dripped through Dave’s clenched fists at a crawling pace. Nails dug crescents into his palms and a bruise blossomed near his right cheek. He absently felt something wet splash down next to his ears.

Dave wished he’d been proactive enough to move to the roof before Bro had gotten off work. The concrete of the complex’s roof wasn’t any better than the wooden floor, but at least the roof would offer a bit of a breeze instead of the dry heat in his bedroom. Maybe he’d have gotten a concussion outside, and he wouldn’t have to remember any of this. The only positive to being cognisant through this was the memory of Bro’s face when Dave spat at him, the only act of defiance he allowed himself to give through the whole experience. Bro’s glasses had slipped down the bridge of his hooked nose, leaving his eyes exposed. 

For the first time, Dave could see the anger in his expression. By every other standard, Bro was winning. Not a scratch on him, and he appeared to be in control of the situation. Dave knew different. He had rid Bro of his shield, leaving him vulnerable under Dave’s scrutinizing gaze. It was sick to relish in this, but that’s what Striders did. 

Striders fought and scratched, and Dave wanted out of it. Dave moved in a flash, his arms pushing out in front of him before he could think. Bro was knocked off him, completely unbalanced by the shock. Dave stood up, finally looming over Bro for once. 

Dave shut his eyes. The sensations of the real world coming back to him, the cold wind whipping his hair around wildly, the truck rumbling against the cracked road. A hot tear rolled down his cheek, splashing onto the edge of his collar. He didn’t move a hand to wipe at the tear track. It only would’ve drawn attention to the mental breakdown Dave was trying to hide. 

How long had he been silent? Dave hadn’t spaced out like this since he’d started having calls with Rose. He was about to have a real bitchfit with himself if his head was gonna flood itself with shitty memories of a guy who isn’t around anymore. A couple more tears slipped out from behind Dave’s closed eyes discreetly. 

The silence of the truck was deafening, the air becoming thick again, sticking to Dave’s lungs and catching in his throat. He could barely force out a curt laugh just to fill the space with noise. It squeaked out of his mouth. John finally looked over, expecting to meet Dave’s gaze, but only receiving his own reflection from Dave’s shades. He looked back to the road.

The air stayed stagnant like that for five more minutes. Only the buzzing of the truck’s engine kept Dave sane. His fingers tapped a counter-melody on the windowsill, keeping time with the rattling of the wheels.

“Game’s over, I guess.” John sputtered nervously amongst the silence

Dave answered a short, “yep,” head nodding slightly with acknowledgement. 

At least when Dave looked out the window now there was the interest of cozy houses to give him something to focus on. There weren’t any holiday decorations, but the area still felt too festive for what Dave was used to. Little wreaths with fake berries and statues of cuddly animals adorned front doors and lawns respectively. One house still had Christmas lights strung up despite it being nearly March. Dave rolled his eyes at the display. At least they had the common sense to take down any blow-up Santas out of the lawnring. 

Slowly, the houses grew in size, and John began pointing out houses. Terezi lived in a grand colonial style house, four grand pillars framed the dark green front door. Somehow this didn’t settle well with Dave, it didn’t seem to fit the girl with the traffic cone orange hair and ripped fishnets. John said her parents were lawyers. A couple houses down John excitedly pointed out his own home. Cream colored with navy trimmings, it seemed so quaint despite its size. He even owned a porch swing with delicate flowers painted on the side. John smiled brightly, telling Dave he was welcome over anytime. 

And then John stopped the car. 

The house was modern, a stark contrast to the more traditional homes surrounding it. High windows scaled the front entrance, and it felt so much like the mom Rose had described to him countless times. He could imagine Rose initially grumbling about the ostentatious design before she could add her own dark academia flare to the crannies of the house, making it a home for her. Dave tried to imagine what the house would look like with his equipment in there and his katanas hanging from the walls. It would look silly, all of his accoutrements against Rose and Mom’s sophisticated decorative styles. 

“Oh, David,” Kanaya called out upon seeing John’s truck roll into the driveway. David was not Dave’s real name, but he decided to let it slide for the moment being. He slowly crept out of the truck, stretching momentarily to bring the feeling back to his creaky joints. As soon as he was out of the cab, Karkat was scrambling muttering, “This is why no one wants to play your stupid fucking game.” as he left. John scrambled after him with curses under his breath. Dave debated chasing after Karkat too, but Kanaya called his name again. He tore his gaze from the mass of curly black hair and strode over to Kanaya.

“What’s up, Mary?” His voice came out easily without the tension of the previous conversation. 

“You’re finally here to move in all your things.” She smiled sweetly while gesturing to her van. 

“I don’t get any help?” Dave quirked up a bro over the top of his shades.

“Well, we already dropped Terezi off on our way here, and my body clearly wasn’t made for menial labor.” She scoffed as though this was the simplest fact ever. “And don’t get me started on Rose, you know how she is.” 

Dave chuckled at Kanaya’s jab. The edge of his lip quirked up lopsidedly, “I don’t think you’re girlfriend would be too pleased to know you’re making jeers at her expense.”

Kanaya laughed easily, “Well, she’ll only know if somebody snitches on me, right David?”

“Touche, Mary.”

“You know my last name is Maryam, correct?”

“Much like you know my real name is Dave, not David.”

Kanaya smiled coyly, “Touche, David, touche.”

Rose popped the door of the van open. “You’re both aware that I can hear you, and it’s for this reason that I won’t be offering my assistance.” Dave and Kanaya snickered in tandem until Dave realized that he really did have to unpack all his shit on his own. “Fuck. I guess I should hunt John and Kitkat down.” His bottom lip jutted out in a pathetic pout. 

Most of his belongings were music equipment, and that shit was really heavy. Sure, Dave wasn’t weak by any means, but it would be such a chore to carry everything in on his own. So, he booked it in the direction he saw John chase Karkat in once they had arrived. He peered around the truck just in case the pair had returned. To no one’s surprise, John and Karkat were still nowhere in sight. With a heavy sigh, Dave started off towards the thick patch of trees. 

Dave tread cautiously because Karkat looked pretty upset as he ran out of the car. Yeah, Dave wanted help with all his shit, but he didn’t want to intrude on anything like an asshole. Also he could listen for Karkat and John’s voices better when he walked quietly. He was thankful that Karkat’s voice carried because John could be incredibly quiet when he wanted to.

Dave followed the trills and what sounded like squeaky sobs further in the forest. Suddenly, Dave felt really apprehensive about finding them. He figured Karkat was crying about what happened during the drive. Originally, Dave just thought he was a little pissed off from all the teasing, but maybe he had actually been super upset. 

Karkat was crying, presumably because of something Dave had done. His heart sank like concrete all the way to the pit of his stomach. Dave swiftly turned to leave, planning on taking care of his stuff on his own when a hand gripped his shoulder. 

Dave had hoped for a nanosecond that it would be Karkat’s small hand, but it was far too pale to belong to him. John smiled sympathetically when Dave turned around dejectedly. 

“Hey Dave,” his voice rang quietly in the stillness of the trees. “So, I bet you’re out here because of Karkat.” 

“How observant, John.” Dave’s sarcasm came off too bitter for his liking. None of the bitterness was aimed at John, but it would take some superior perception to notice the interlacing of self loathing.

“You should know he isn’t upset with you…” John trailed off the end of his sentence, obviously wanting to say more when he knows he shouldn’t. “He’s upset, for sure, but just give him some time and try talking things out with him. I can’t promise he’ll be very willing to speak his mind, as crazy as that sounds, but just be gentle.” Teeth poked out of John’s crooked smile. Dave heaved a sigh, quietly asking John to help him bring his stuff inside. 

Halfway through their return to the house, Dave rounded on John. “Will um,” he stuttered over the right words to say, how to craft a caring sentence that didn’t let on to how worried he was. “Is Karkat gonna… will he be alright. Alone, I mean.”

John nodded reassuringly. “Yeah. He’s a tough cookie, don’t worry.” 

Dave nodded again before picking up the pace to the piles of his equipment outside the house. Together, John and Dave hauled the latter’s mixers and instruments into Dave’s new room. Dave would deal with organizing everything later, right now he was just concerned with getting it all inside. The two worked in relative silence, only speaking when they needed help carrying something. 

Rose and Kanaya were nowhere to be seen during all of this, and Dave was thankful for it. He really didn’t need any psychoanalysis from his sister right now, nor did he need the well intentioned, yet slightly condescending chiding from her girlfriend. 

Pinprick pain stung at the base of Dave’s back when it was all over. The sun was descending beyond the horizon, drawing his thoughts back to Karkat alone in that forest. Dave slumped over the couch with a groan. He wished he could just walk right out and talk to him, invite him inside for some juice or something, but he couldn’t. There was no way Karkat would follow him anywhere after all that’s happened today.

Dave had been well aware that Karkat wasn’t happy about him moving in. Hell, he even heard the kid shit talk him in the airport. The shit talking didn’t bother Dave. Everybody had to cope somehow, and normally such coping was done without much thought. Dave was used to harsh words, and Karkat’s couldn’t compare to everything he’s heard the past eighteen years. 

Apparently, Karkat was a lot more fragile than he originally thought. He assumed there was some posturing to Karkat’s “high and mighty” act, but he hadn’t realized how deeply the act affected him. Within a matter of seconds, Dave had shattered Karkat’s facade, decommissioning him for who knows how long. 

Suffice to say, Dave felt like shit.

John had offered to retrieve Karkat before he left, but that didn’t settle well in Dave’s chest. John shouldn’t be responsible for cleaning up Dave’s messes. Dave was gonna make this happen one way or another. 

Once the sky finally took on a purple tint, Dave resigned himself to finally talking things over with Karkat. 

Putting on the steeliest of exteriors, Dave shoved himself off the couch. Sluggishly, Dave trudged through the foyer, slowly opening the glass door. John’s truck was missing from the driveway. Dave could only imagine that he was winding down with his dad and Nanna over a batch of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. 

Dave didn’t worry about being quiet this time, announcing his entrance with the crunch of dry leaves and the cracking of snapped twigs. Karkat looked up from his neat pile of leaves amongst the pine trees, his wide doe eyes going feral with fear. Dave’s heart panged at the sight of Karkat’s puffy eyes, red veins popping out from crying. He tried to cover it up by covering his face with the thick sleeves of his jumper, but Dave knew.

Silently, he outstretched a hand to Karkat. Then Dave realised he shouldn’t be doing anything silently when Karkat wouldn’t chance a look anywhere near him, so he coughed. Karkat bristled at the sound, eyes shooting up to Dave’s fingertips, following the curve of his arm. Dave tried on a lopsided smile, hoping it didn’t come off as his normal cocky smirk. It was sufficient enough for Karkat as he let Dave grip his hand, pulling him to his feet. 

Karkat still refused to look Dave in the eyes the entire walk back to the house, but Dave couldn’t really blame him. The tension in the air was palpable. Sometimes Karkat’s arm would brush against Dave’s, causing both to bristle, jumping apart after a quick glance in the other’s direction. The fear stricken face Karkat wore broke Dave's heart for reasons he couldn’t find the words to explain, nor did he really have the energy to decipher why this struck a chord in his heart. 

The air was hot when they finally entered the house again, a sharp contrast to the chilly night breeze. Karkat’s nose was red, from the cold or sobbing, Dave wasn’t sure, but he was sparing Karkat the embarrassment of asking. However, he couldn’t figure out what he was going to ask Karkat. He’d have to get the conversation rolling somehow. 

Karkat shifted uncomfortably on the couch, the white leather squeaking under his squirming. Dave guessed that Karkat wasn’t a guest at the Lalonde’s often, and it made sense why. He looked so out of place amongst the decor. His sweater hung limply across his shoulders, and for the first time, Dave noticed the cartoonish crab decorating the front. The vibrancy of the crab popped against the slate grey of the fabric. Dave never pegged Karkat as the type to wear something so inherently childish like a cartoon crab on a fluffy sweater. He looked almost like a kid in the black and white of the living room. Everything in the house was sharp angles and modernist designs with hints of Rose’s purple color scheme and extravagant decorative flourishes where Karkat was soft edges where he failed to manage his expression and posture.

Dave mentally smacked himself for going on another thought ramble and inadvertently leaving Karkat to squirm in discomfort while he watched. 

“Hey, so uh, about earlier…” Dave trailed off, moreso opening up the conversation for Karkat instead of being direct with him. 

Karkat snapped his head up, hand clenching at his side. “I don’t wanna talk about it.” His voice wavered despite the obvious attempts Karkat made to level his tone. 

Dave let out an exasperated sigh. “I know you don’t wanna talk, but I think it’s kinda important.” Dave scratched at the back of his neck while he waited for Karkat to respond. Luck, however, wasn’t on Dave’s side tonight because Karkat’s lips were basically sewn into a tight perse. “Listen, Karkat,” Dave pointedly used his real name, “I know you aren’t happy about me being here.”

Karkat made to protest only for Dave’s hand to jut out in front of his face to silence him. Karkat clamped his jaw shut to let Dave continue, even though he didn’t look happy about it. “As I was saying, dearest Karkat, I know you’re the actual opposite of thrilled about the prospect of me being here. I’m not exactly sure why because I don’t know you, but that doesn’t give me an excuse for the bullshit I pulled in the truck.” Karkat perked up at Dave’s words, a look of confusion crossing his eyes. Dave pinched his nose as he continued, “I guess what I’m trying to say is, uh, sorry.”

Karkat looked away, a tremble breaking up the tense line of his lips. Dave couldn’t tell what all these facial cues meant, and he surely wasn’t about to risk scaring Karkat off by asking. Instead, Dave pitched a smile in his direction, tentative at best and doing nothing to hide his apprehension. 

Karkat slowly looked up, more tears threatening to spill out, but Dave wasn’t going to mention those either. Karkat tried to speak several times only to choke up on his words. After a couple of quiet minutes filled with Karkat’s ragged breathing, he was able to speak up. “Why are you being so nice to me?” 

The words hit Dave like a train. It was the last thing Dave had expected to come out of his mouth. Dave didn’t know if he expected or wanted a snarky comment thrown his way, but he wasn’t entirely adverse to Karkat’s tone. It was the kind of open softness he’d never felt before. A hot flash of doubt streaked across his mind as he wondered why Karkat would allow himself to be so vulnerable, didn’t he know that left him liable to be hurt? 

Vulnerability seemed to be one of Karkat’s strong suits, even when he so desperately tried to hide the heart on his sleeve. It was endearing in ways that made Dave’s head spin. He wasn’t quite sure how to respond when he couldn’t even be half as genuine as Karkat was being. Normally he wouldn’t even want to be genuine with anyone, but something about Karkat’s bleeding heart made him want to try. 

If Dave was in a different headspace, he’d have found the effect Karkat was having on him to be infuriating. He’d probably even find it in himself to pity the boy if he wasn’t actually so worried about how fragile he was. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth when he reflected on this. Uncomfortable butterflies began to flutter through his stomach as he fumbled through a response.

“Well, uh,” Dave mumbled, “I’m not a complete asshole, Vantas.”

A light red streaked across his cheeks, faint enough to go unnoticed by Karkat. Dave scratched at the wispy scruff on his chin, anxiously awaiting Karkat’s response. Karkat, however, didn’t look like he knew what to say at all. His fingers fidgeted near his sleeves, eyes scanning the room so he wouldn’t have to look at Dave. Dave sighed heavily, resigning himself to the fact that he’d be leading this conversation if he wanted any of the tension to dissipate from the room. 

“I don’t-” Dave’s voice broke off awkwardly, and he had to clear his throat before he could continue. “I don’t know you very well, and I really didn’t mean anything from my teasing in the truck earlier.” Karkat tensed up as if Dave was approaching a topic he wanted to stay as far away from as possible. Dave could sympathize. “I just wanted you to know I’m sorry.” Dave tried to push past his awkwardness to look apologetic as he spoke to Karkat. 

Karkat wasn’t eased by the apology, in fact it seemed to have made his reactions worse. He stopped looking around the room, opting to stare at a random vase decorating the opposite wall, and his shoulders held a tight line perpendicular to his spine. Karkat’s eyes glossed over slightly as if he wasn’t here, but rather racing through thoughts in his mind. Hesitantly, Dave placed his hand atop Karkat’s, snapping the latter out of his thoughts. They shared awkward smiles before Dave withdrew his hand. 

Karkat cleared his throat, though his voice still came out uneven. “It’s really no big deal. Everyone picks on me, I pick on everyone. It’s fine.” Karkat picked at the fuzz on his sleeves while he talked, still averting his eyes from Dave. 

Dave would not accept this. This being Karkat brushing off his feelings when the whole situation obviously upset him.

“Hey, dude,” Dave tried to get Karkat to look at him to no avail. “I’m gonna be honest here, I know I boast a lot about how amazing I am, but sometimes I really don’t know how to read people. Surprising, I know. With all my prowess, who would’ve guessed that I could be so socially inept sometimes.” Karkat seemed more annoyed than reassured, so Dave figured he should be getting to the point sooner rather than later. “Basically, what I’m saying is you gotta tell me when I’m toeing the line or when I go too far. I can’t always tell, you know. So, like, just keep me in check, bro. I don’t want any more pouty and sad Kitkats anymore, okay?”

Karkat rolled his eyes, but the corners of his mouth quirked up. Dave was all sorts of ridiculous. It sort of reminded him of John and the way he gets so fussy when he learns he upset someone. There was one time Karkat was particularly upset that John even said he would dress up as a clown and do a stupid little dance if it would cheer Karkat up. A small part of Karkat wondered if he could get Dave to the same point, but he swiftly batted that thought back into the farthest reaches of his head. Now Karkat looked like the ridiculous one, smiling about a boy he barely knew.

Karkat’s small changes in composure was the only thing that held back the flood of apologies Dave was about to unleash on him. It eased most of the tension in Dave’s shoulders, which was enough for the blonde at the moment. He still wanted to apologize though, so he did, receiving a similar dismissal from Karkat as before without the tension in his posture. 

The two sat in silence for a moment before it became deafening for Dave. Things were always noisy in Huston, whether it was from the traffic or Dave’s sick beats didn’t matter, so Dave hated silence. The quiet made him fidget uncomfortably, random thoughts bubbled up his throat, threatening to spill out just to fill all the space between him and Karkat. Normally Dave would ramble about everything he thought about, but the comfortable look on Karkat’s face made him want to maintain the quiet for Karkat’s sake. 

After two minutes Dave couldn’t contain it anymore. He would have more opportunities to give Karkat quiet time. He had finally smoothed things over and he wanted to talk to Karkat. 

Ever perceptive, Karkat seemed to pick up on Dave’s uneasiness despite Dave not moving an inch since the two stopped talking. Karkat slumped back into the cushions of the couch, huffing before he spoke. 

“You can say whatever’s on your mind. You look like you’re being tortured.” 

Dave narrowed his eyes behind his shades, knowing damn well that he hadn’t shown any signs of “being tortured” over the short stint of radio silence. He did want to speak though, so he decided not to bite back at Karkat’s taunt, for fear that he would set the boy off again. 

“I was still just curious about things. John was right when he said we should get to know each other.”

Karkat looked warily at Dave, unsure and anxious about where this was going.

Dave quickly reassured him, “I’m not suggesting we keep playing John’s game.” Dave paused for half a beat, “Okay, maybe I am suggesting we play John’s game, but we’ll play with modified rules. I won’t grill you about anything you don’t want to answer, and you can stop me at any time, promise.”

Karkat slumped further into the cushions. “One hundred percent promise?”

Dave cracked a cool smile, “You have the Strider guarantee on that, Vantas.” 

Reluctantly, Karkat agreed to play Under Oath with Dave under the aforementioned modified rules. The two settled into a comfortable rhythm of asking questions, starting simple at first, generic questions about hobbies and favorite foods. Dave learned that Karkat liked to read, though he looked embarrassed when Dave asked him what his favorite genre was, and he liked to cook Lumpia and Pancit with his older brother for special occasions. It made Dave feel a little embarrassed himself when he had to fess up to Karkat that his own favorite food was Kraft mac and cheese. Karkat snickered at the fact, his laugh bordering on a giggle with how absolutely tickled he was. The two avoided the topic of family, Karkat never going into depth about his own, not that Dave asked about it, nor did Karkat ask Dave about his dad. It made Dave wonder if maybe Karkat had been paying attention to his conversation with John earlier. He shook the thought off for now.

After testing the waters, Dave tried to ask a riskier question, “So, are you feeling up to explaining that hatedate stuff from earlier?”

Karkat groaned, covering his eyes as he threw his head onto the back of the couch. He sat there for a moment, and Dave was prepared to dismiss the question, but Karkat muttered from behind his hands, “It was middle school.”

Dave perked up at the information, showing his interest even though Karkat was covering his eyes. 

“I was feeling all these confusing feelings, like all middle schoolers do, and instead of looking at porn like every other stupid preteen boy, I tried to compartmentalize all my feelings for people to make it easier to manage. It didn’t help that Terezi and I had already been speaking like aliens to each other since we were ten.” Karkat looked mortified when he finally uncovered his face. “It’s so embarrassing to look back on. We had this whole alien society, Alternia, isn’t that lame? We spoke in Alternian. We have so many notebooks full of translations like an English to dumbass kids’ alien language dictionary. Anyways, I’ve gotten off topic. A hatedate is something between kismesis. A kismesitude is a relationship between two people founded upon hate and frustration. There’s a lot more to it, but I couldn’t delve into quadrant stuff tonight.” He raked his hands through his hair before dragging them back down his face. His fingertips pulled at his bottom eyelids. He looked tired explaining all of this, but Dave found it incredibly endearing. 

“A whole alien society? That sounds pretty serious Karkat. I’m definitely gonna have to pick your brain about that another time.”

“Pick Terezi’s brain about it. It’s one of her favorite things to tease me about.” 

Karkat’s bottom lip jutted out at the thought of the onslaught of teasings he had received due to his Alternian culture. Dave laughed almost annoyingly with how controlled it was. Karkat almost wanted to ask him about it, but he remembered the fleeting moments in the truck when Dave’s jaw would tense ever so slightly at a question that bordered on too personal. Dave wasn’t ready to open up, and Karkat still wasn’t sure he even wanted to put himself in a chill feelings session with the infuriating Dave Strider because Dave was still incredibly infuriating, but he had some redeeming qualities. It always took Karkat some time to warm up to people, but he was warming up to Dave far faster than he’d expected himself to. 

They continued talking.

Both of them lost track of the time after an hour or so of exchanging questions. It was only when Karkat had yawned for the upteenth time, rubbing the sleepiness out of his eyes, and Kanaya had emerged from Rose’s room at the early hour of 3:28 am to the surprise of the two boys that Dave and Karkat decided they should probably say their goodbyes. 

Kanaya offered to take Karkat to her house, which Karkat had some protests to. The two headed into the kitchen to discuss, but Dave could still hear their conversation. Karkat argued that he could walk back to his house, but Kanaya seemed to have none of that. It confused Dave. John and Terezi’s houses seemed so close. He didn’t see what the problem was with Karkat walking. 

“You’re not walking all the way across town.” Kanaya’s voice rang smoothly from the kitchen.

“Well you’re not going to baby me. I’m a big boy, and it’s not like this is the first time I’ve walked home.” Karkat was obviously frustrated by all this.

Dave tuned out for a moment, the conversation turning fuzzy and distant in his ears while he thought. 

Across town.

Karkat didn’t live in this neighborhood, and by the sounds of it “across town” didn’t seem to be that great of an area if Kanaya was throwing such a big fuss about Karkat walking there. Eventually, Kanaya must have convinced Karkat to go home with her since the two left together, Karkat dragging his feet across the floor like a petulant child. 

It finally dawned on Dave that maybe Karkat could be as calculating as he is. Through all their time talking to each other Dave hadn’t ever really learned about Karkat’s life. Sure, he had shared stories about his time with friends, but he always kept things just vague enough that no one could decipher anything deeper than what you gleaned from the surface. It was strikingly similar to how Dave crafted his own tales. He only knew what Karkat wanted him to know. 

All this time he thought Karkat was an open book, but it seemed like he was more of an old library, and it scared Dave how much he wanted to read every volume Karkat had to offer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today I offer you 10,000 words of DaveKat, but they're really awkward and don't know how to interact together  
> Tomorrow?   
> Who knows?

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!!  
> If I've made any major grammatical errors, please let me know.


End file.
